Scientists have created an unusual flying robot that has similar wings to a bat and even flies like one. This new drone has wings covered with thin, silicon skin where researchers call this the Bat Bot. Its flexible wings appear like bat wings and also use nine different artificial joints.
According to roboticist and author of this new study, Soon-Jo Chung from the Caltech (California Technical Institute), bats have impressive flight skills and quick movements during perching and flying. Chung who is also a research scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory explains that bat flight is also the holy grail when it comes to aerial robotics.
How is the Bat Bot different to any flying drone? This robotic creation does not use any spinning propellers commonly found in quadrotor drones, instead, the Bat Bot mimics a real bat species called Egyptian fruit bats.
Chung explains how they reverse engineered the bats' unrivaled agility to build a safe and energy efficient, soft-winged robot drone that can fly like a real bat. This new Bat Bot can also sustain flight of 100 feet in a straight line, while it flaps its wings to lift itself into propulsion. This drone also weighs less than one fourth of a pound and possesses a wingspan of a foot and a half.
The team says that flying bat robots are very advantageous than traditional drones since it is safer to use when operating near humans since it does not have any spinning parts. Apart from this, the Bat Bot can also maneuver in tight spaces and more importantly, its flexible wings only exert a minimal amount of energy.
According to co-author of the study, Seth Hutchinson of the University of Illinois, some of the practical applications of the Bat Bot is to monitor a construction site if a structure is being built according to its plans, perching on steel beams and surveying the site.
This new study is published in the journal Science Robotics.